Not All Paths Point Home, Not All Compasses North
by Mordecai Sunstorm
Summary: The first chapter of how I think it came about. Ahh, the good old days when Sparrow and Barbossa didn't hate each other quite as much...
1. Default Chapter

I do hereby announce that I do not own the rights to anything at all. I'm just a normal guy. A really bored normal guy. Who thinks Depp is cool. Orlando, too. Though I like Legolas better.  
  
Aaron McLucas  
Chapter One  
  
"Jack Sparrow," announced the ship's captain from far below, his hat's ridiculously large feather flapping to and fro in the sea breeze, "You have been found guilty of Piracy by the East India Company! How do you plead?" Jack Sparrow looked down gingerly, and felt a small lump form in his throat. He had stood on a mast's crossbar many times before, but suddenly it seemed very high and dangerous. Of course, the noose around his neck contributed greatly to this feeling. Sparrow's head snapped forward in it's usual exasperated fashion, and he allowed himself a small smile.  
"I've always found your means of confession moving, Captain Morales!" said Sparrow in return. "Tell me, if I plead innocent of the aforesaid crimes, will I be released or will you just scurry along the nooseman?"  
"You are far too loudmouthed," shot back the Captain. "What you should learn before anything else is how to keep your mouth shut when needs be!"  
"Well," thought Sparrow out loud, "I don't think I have the time for a speech lesson at the moment, being tied up and all, but I might be able to make enough time for a couple of pointers, if you insist." Captain Morales' eyes narrowed and his lips pursed.  
"I do insist. And here's your first lesson! Sailor, ready the release! Let this pirate scum dangle for awhile; then we'll see how witty he can be when he has no breath with which to speak!" The sailor\hangman made his way carefully to Jack's side, ready to prod him over at the next command.  
"Poor bastard." said the sailor, and it seemed like he meant it. "You were probably just another sailor out to strike it rich, and got sucked into the wrong crowd. And here you died, penniless and alone."  
"Watch the 'were' and 'died', mate," said Sparrow quietly. "The future's always in motion, savvy? Because the fact is," he looked sideways at him with a smile, "I'm not poor." A familiar low boom sounded, followed by a whistle and a deafening splintering sound. Sailors panicked below, and Captain Morales ducked for cover as one of his lower masts tumbled down like a felled tree, the sails collapsing in a bundled heap.  
"And I'm definitely not alone!" Just inside cannon range a huge multi-sailed ship was in view. The entire crew of Morales' boat was so intent on the hanging of Jack Sparrow that no one noticed the other ship quietly slipping up port side.  
"The Black Pearl!!" Morales immediately started barking orders. "Load the guns! Load the guns! Don't let them board! Tie up the front sail and bring us out of range!" Morales' arm lunged up towards the crow's nest, his finger pointing right at Jack like a slender pistol and his face beet red with anger. "And KILL THAT PIRATE!" The hangman tore his gaze away from the oncoming ship and back to his charge, only to find that Sparrow's hands were no longer tied. During the confusion, Jack had somehow managed to wriggle his spidery hands free from the ropes. The sailor stood shocked and wide-eyed for a moment; long enough for Sparrow to slip the noose around the poor man's wrist and gave him a shove. He fell a short distance before the rope went taut, where he held on for dear life.  
Sparrow swung off the mast pole and slid down the very same rope. Using the hangman's body as leverage, he kicked off of him and was able to grab the mast netting.  
"Sorry!" Sparrow called back to the sailor as he scrambled down the rope ladder. A group of four East India Soldiers waited for him at the bottom, some already taking aim with their shortmuskets. But instead of climbing down, Sparrow simply jumped off, using the soldiers for a convenient, soft landing spot. One musket went off, but the shot zinged harmlessly towards the sky. The men did not expect this move, and were momentarily stunned. By the time Jack regathered himself, however, so had they. Sparrow was pushed roughly up against the ship's railing, muskets pointed at his head. Hammers went back with a click. Then the soldiers realized the clicks hadn't come from their guns. They had come from the Pirates'. "I'm thinkin' you wanna drop those, mates." Said Barbossa. He, along with two other boats full of pirates, had rowed from the Pearl before the cannon shot had been fired. Seeing that the ship's crew had surrendered, the soldiers reluctantly obeyed. Barbossa handed Jack his sword and pistol. "You better be glad you got me as a First Mate, Jack. Without me you'd be a soggy piece o' flotsam by now!" Sparrow took his weapons and smiled. "Always knew you were the man for the job, mate. 'Sides, the plan worked perfectly. Isn't that right, Morales?" Jack spun to face the defeated captain and tossed him a grin. "I am an agent of the East India Company." Morales said sharply. "If you kill me the Company will put a price on your head so high every Agent, Pirate, and Corsair in the Vast Oceans will be tracking you down! Like a shark to blood! You will pay dearly, Jack Sparrow!" Jack sauntered up to Morales, stood inches from him. "CAPTAIN. That's CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow. And now I'll give you a speech lesson, how does that sound?" Sparrow slowly turned Morales' head to the side and whispered pointedly into his ear. "Shut up." Jack stepped back and flitted Morales' feather with his finger. "Fact is, I don't want to kill you, mate. You have somethin' I want, and you're going to give it to me, savvy?" "You can't have it." Said Morales. "You don't understand the consequences. None of you do! You're all going to die!" Barbossa drew his cutlass and held it to the Captain's throat. "You'll be passin it over anyhow, scum!" he said sternly, giving his famous yellow-toothed smirk. "Whether it points North or no!" 


	2. Paths from Home

Chapter 2  
  
Jack Sparrow leaned on the wheel of his fabulous ship, the Black Pearl, and looked out across the vast ocean. The rolling waves, that not- so-definitive horizon, the cloud-streaked sky. Everything he so loved was here. All he ever needed in life was a deck to Captain and blue-green waters to sail upon; Jack had known it since birth. He was born upon a ship not too much unlike this one, beautiful and dangerous as he was. He allowed himself a small smile as he watched his loyal crew laboring lightly on the ship's main deck. The wind was perfect, and spirits were high. Thoughts of his past would come back to him on days like these, and he let them.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
"Captain!" said the doctor as he came up from below, a worried look pasted upon his face. "I don't think she's going to make it. Her fever is dangerous, and land is nowhere near. I don't know what to do now; I've done as much as I can." The Captain's already worried face became even more so, the wrinkles on his face deepening. His mind wandered for a moment, until he became aware of the entire crew looking at him expectantly. He regathered his wits and did his best to smile.  
"Your best is all I ask for, Thomas. And I have no doubt that you are doing just so. We will double our efforts here, and hope for the best. Right, boys?" The crew let out heartfelt 'aye's and rushed to tighten ropes and stretch sails. The Captain knew that they would do their utmost to speed the ship along, though they couldn't do much more than they already had. Time was running out.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Sunlight glinted of the waves just then, and Sparrow's train of thought was momentarily interrupted. The wind had changed slightly, and he compensated for it perfectly. He had determined the bearings of the island he had been searching for from ancient maps he had 'borrowed' from Captain Morales. The bearings for what he thought to be the greatest treasure any Pirate would ever claim.  
Piracy. Even the mention of that word made him smile. For some people, piracy was a vicious crime; a path only the treacherous, treasonous, and evil would dare take. There were many who could kill a pirate without thinking twice, and enjoy doing so. But to Jack Sparrow, piracy was the only path. Not because he enjoyed the evils, because in no way did he ever see it as evil, but because that's what he was at heart. It was an adventure every time he left port. The feeling Jack Sparrow got when the sails would open for the first time after debarking, when the wind would fill them like the breath of the gods.nothing in the world compared. It was his hearts way of telling Jack that he was truly free.  
Piracy was not evil. It was not criminal. It was what told him he was alive.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The sailor known as Thomas came from below some time later, blood upon his hands. "She's slipping away fast, now, Captain. It will only be a short matter of time." He placed his hand upon the Captain's shoulder. "It's time. You can go see her, say goodbye." The Captain's heart sank.  
"I assume there's nothing else to do." Thomas shook his head.  
"Not unless you have some sort of medicine in your coat. And I know you do not."  
"How is the child?" asked the Captain concernedly.  
"All right, sir, except." Thomas struggled uncomfortably. "Well, it's a newborn sir, and we don't have milk onboard, if you understand me, sir. We're days from any port, and we ain't got nothing to feed it." The Captain nodded.  
"Thank you, Thomas. From the bottom of my soul, thank you." With that said, the Captain went below to see his wife and child. She lay on a bed of cotton; the child lay upon her breast. She looked up at him weakly and smiled. The Captain met her gaze and held it. His head sank, and he went to his knees beside her.  
"I'm so sorry," he wept. "I'm so very sorry." She reached up to touch his face.  
"It's okay, my love," she whispered. "The baby came early. You could not have known. Not any angel of heaven could have known. I do not blame you."  
"But the child.without you, it cannot eat. What am I to do? How do I save him?" Her eyes moved to the newborn, and rested there. She did not immediately speak, but when she did she gave no answer.  
"Isn't he lovely?" she cooed. "I have named him after the most wonderful man in the world." The Captain looked down at his child as she continued. "His name will be Jack. The name is strong, just like his father. He will hold on. His mother will see to that, whether she draws breath on this earth or not."  
The Captain shared a long moment in silence with his small family, and they both wept softly. He was about to speak when a call came from above. A call that chilled his blood and renewed all fears that might have been laid aside for the moment.  
Pirates. Moving into position to attack the ship. All hopes of life for his wife and child were all but lost. What was he to do?  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
"The day's a good one." Said Barbossa as he came up to Jack's side. Jack, his thought interrupted again, looked over at him for a moment, then back to the ocean.  
"Aye, it is that." Agreed Sparrow. He repeated it to himself quietly. "It is that." Barbossa followed Jack's gaze out over the waters.  
"I've been meanin' to ask ya.all things are even and trusted between us, agreed?" his tone was soft and genuine. Jack shrugged.  
"Of course, mate. Everything is square and fair. What's the question?" Barbossa leaned upon the railing, his oily black hair blowing in the breeze.  
"It's killin' me, Jack. I need to know what's going on, where we're headin'. I can't direct lost sailors like you. Bein' First Mate is harder than I reckoned. All I ask is for the bearins. I need to know to chart and direct; it'll only serve to your advantage. I figure if all is trusted between us, there's no reason to be keepin' it to yourself. After all, we'll all be rich men in a few weeks." Barbossa laughed then, a true and deep laugh. Jack looked over and smiled in return.  
"All right, mate. I'll be down in a while." Barbossa nodded and went back to his duties. Jack felt in his heart that he couldn't get a better crew, and telling them the details of the rewards they would receive wouldn't hurt anything.  
After all, they were all Pirates. And damn good men.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
The Captain ordered the ship's Standard be raised fully, and he stood upon the bow of his ship like a sentinel, Proud and Strong. If he and his men, his family, were to fall to Pirates, they would not die without valor. The cannons were loaded, muskets and pistols made ready. But as the enemy ship came into range, he did not give the command to fire. His men looked up at him nervously, but he gave no signal. He just stood, out in the open, and looked across the gap, his eyes full of pain and sorrow.  
The pirate Captain saw him there, standing tall and strong. His eyes pierced the Pirate's soul like no other ever had, and the Enemy Captain could not give the order to fire, either. It was against the code to fire upon surrendered prey. But the white flag hadn't been raised! What were they doing?  
Boarding hooks were thrown onto the deck of Captain Sparrow's ship, and the two boats were drawn together. Captain Sparrow had moved to the side railing, and as the ships came together with a low boom, the two Captains found each other face to face, with naught but railings between them. Neither crew dared to attack without an order, and none wan given. Sparrow's heart seemed to freeze in his chest as he beheld his enemy; his very breath halted. This was a thing absolutely unheard of.  
She was a woman.  
And she looked to be pregnant.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
Jack knew that fortune had always been on his side. His adopted mother had told him everything just before she left him at Tortuga at the age of eight. He knew about his real father; he had even attended his funeral when he learned of it. He was a member of the Royal Navy and was unfortunately killed in action. Jack had never known him.  
Jack shook his head clear of the past and realized the sun was beginning to sink. He surrendered the wheel to his trusty helmsman and went to his quarters. Barbossa sat in his favorite chair, and was eating an apple. He immediately put it aside and smiled when Sparrow entered.  
"Hello, Jack!" he stood up and walked to the course maps. "About those bearins'." 


End file.
